As It Continues
by crzdsunbeam
Summary: Istrali is part of the new generation of Dragon Riders. She goes to train with Eragon, but when he hears of disterbing events in Alagaesia, Istrali is sent back. Itrali and her dragon, Candorth, are the only ones who can keep Alagaesia from falling into chaos once more.


September 13, 8008 A.C. Seven years after Eragon's journey to the unknown east.

Can you feel it? The fear, it is all around us, and its growing fast. The kingdom of Alagaesia is crumbling again, and my teacher says that he cannot save us this time. The responsibility falls to me, and my dragon, Cadrias. Yet we are young, younger than any of the other student dragon riders. I don't know why we were chosen, or even how. There is a force bigger than all of us at work, though I don't know if it is evil or benevolent. This journal will hold all my accounts from before Cadrias hatched for me, until the present. For you to truly understand, I must start at the beginning.

January 31, 8003 A.C.

This was the day the matron found me on the doorstep of the orphanage in the south part of Teirm. Not a bad little place, but no matter what, there wasn't enough food. Lord Risthart didn't care about the poor people. So, by the time I was three, the matron turned me out onto the streets to fend for myself. I don't blame her. She needed as much room as she could for the new arrivals. I turned to thievery to survive, and that was just barely. Filching bits of coin and other baubles from people's pockets won't take you far in life. But I'm still here, so I guess it worked.

By the time two years had passed, I had found a small wooden crate in a back alley way. Furnished with scraps of torn and filthy cloth, it became my home. I was painfully thin and short for my age. I couldn't read or write, but that wasn't so unusual. Most working people can't. Somehow, I managed to get by on my own, at 5 years old. That was until I found the white dragon egg in my crate.

Everyone knew what dragons were like now. Big strong intelligent creatures, which hatched from a stone-like egg, its size depended on how big the mom was when she laid it. The baby dragon wouldn't hatch until it came into contact with its rider, and then it would keep growing until it died. Some dragons got to be as big as a castle, they were so old. But why was one here? Did someone leave it here for me? I was a malnourished little kid; there was no way it was meant for me. Eragon was 3 times my age when he found Saphira.

Against my better judgment, I picked the egg up. It was smooth, cold and no bigger than my head. I cradled it against my chest, then nervously looked around the alley way. There was no one else there, no one to see the egg. I crawled into my crate and curled around the egg. I would keep it safe until morning, and then I would find someone else to take it.

August 28, 8005 A.C.

That morning, at daybreak, I covered the egg with a small scrap of cloth and then crept out of the alley, taking care that no one saw me. The marketplace would be the best place to find an elf, or a government agent. Someone better suited than me for taking care of a dragon egg. I headed that way, keeping the egg clutched close to my chest, dodging the older people milling around. Some glanced at me as I ran by, but I was used to that. The marketplace was crowded that day, adults bumping into each other as they went from one kiosk to the next.

My eyes flittered from face to face, looking for the slanted eyes and pointed ears of an elf. Finally, I found an elf woman looking at some precious gems. Her raven hair and green eyes made for a striking appearance. I started tugging on her skirts before I noticed the armored elf standing next to her. It was then I realized that I was pestering the elf-queen Arya. The guard pointed his spear at me, and I backed away, eyes wide.

"Milady!" I cried, falling to my knees before her. "I mean, your Highness…. Your majesty?" Queen Arya laughed at my confusion, and she gestured for her guard to lower his weapon. "It is okay, Hermial, she's hardly more than a babe." She crouched and cupped my cheek with a slim fingered hand. "There must be a reason you sought me out, is there not?"

I nodded vigorously, holding up the bundle to her. "What is this?" Arya asked. "A gift?" She unwrapped the cloth, and it fluttered to the ground as she stood as still as a statue in shock. "Where did you get this?" Arya said breathlessly.

"I found it near the place where I sleep," I told her. "I don't know why. I thought it would be best to give it to someone who could care for it."

"This egg was taken from the elves over four years ago," she whispered to me. "The pure coincidence of you finding it and returning it to me is unbelievable. But it is yours now."

"What? What do you mean?" I gasped. "I-I can't keep it."

"You have to. Look," Arya held the egg out to me, so I could see the fine web of cracks fingering their way across the surface of the shell. "It's hatching."

I gently took the egg back from her, staring at her in disbelief. "For me?"

"For you, child," Arya smiled softly. "Shall you come with me to my room at the inn, where we can get you cleaned up for your dragon's arrival?"

"Yes, I will go with you," I smiled back at her, and she took my hand, leading me through the marketplace, trailed by her guard. We walked into a nicer part of town, the part street urchins like me wouldn't be allowed in unless we were escorted by royalty, like I was. The inn the queen was staying at really wasn't an inn. It was lodging for royalty and ambassadors whenever they came to visit.

"Sit here for now," she said, gesturing lightly at a padded chair. "Just until it hatches completely. Then I'll try to explain what will happen to your life now."

…

It didn't take much longer for the egg to hatch. The cracks spread faster, and it began to shake more violently. Soon, the shell fell away and a tiny, white, winged creature lay sprawled on my lap. It looked at me with ice blue eyes and squawked shrilly.

"Ah!" Arya's eyes lit up. "It's a boy!"

"It is?" I asked. "How can you tell?"

"The cry," Arya replied, smiling. "Soon, you will be taught to learn the difference also."


End file.
